Facts and Notes at Atlanta Motor Speedway:
· Originally called Atlanta International Raceway, the track was then a 1.5-mile paved speedway.
· The first NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta was on July 31, 1960, won by Fireball Roberts from the pole.
· The track was re-measured to 1.522 miles in the spring of 1970.
· It was renamed Atlanta Motor Speedway in 1990.
· The track layout was reversed and the track was re-configured to 1.54 miles between the two races in 1997.
· There have been 104 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races at Atlanta Speedway, until 2010 there has been two races per year except 1961, which had three. This year marks the second season with only one event.
· Fireball Roberts won the pole and race for the first NASCAR Sprint Cup race in 1960.
· 45 drivers have won a pole, led by Buddy Baker and Ryan Newman, each with seven.
· Six of Newman's seven poles came in consecutive races between March 2003 and October 2005.
· 42 drivers have won a race; 22 have won more than once.
· Dale Earnhardt scored nine victories, more than any other driver. Cale Yarborough is second, with seven.
· Bobby Labonte heads the list of active drivers with six victories. Labonte is tied with NASCAR Hall of Fame inductee Richard Petty for third on the all-time win list at Atlanta.
· The Wood Brothers have 12 victories, more than any organization. They last won there in 1993, with Morgan Shepherd. Hendrick Motorsports has 11 wins at Atlanta and could tie the Wood Brothers this weekend.
· 14 races have been won from the pole. The last to do so was Kasey Kahne in 2006. The last two races have been won from the fifth position.
· 60 races at Atlanta have been won from the first five starting positions.
· Bobby Labonte won the 2001 fall race from the 39th starting position, the deepest in the field that a race winner has started at Atlanta.
(NASCAR)(8-28-2012)

RACE RUNDOWN....news and links

Hamlin wins at Atlanta:#11-Denny Hamlin won the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway for his 4th win of year [the most in the series this season] and 21st career win. Hamlin is the first back-to-back winner of the 2012 season. It is also the 201st win for the car #11, the most all time, now 3 wins over the #43 car.
The race was won under a green-white-checkered finish after a late caution on lap 320. #56-Truex Jr. has a 2.6 second lead over #24-Gordon when the caution came out, but Hamlin won the race off pit road and Hamlin won and Truex Jr. spun his tires and finished 4th.
#24-Gordon finished 2nd followed by #2-Keselowski, #56-Truex Jr., #29-Harvick, #18-Busch, #88-Earnhardt Jr., #27-Menard, #17-Kenseth and #55-Martin.
#10-Danica Patrick finished 29th, tying her career best in her fifth Sprint Cup race of the season.
The points leader, #16-Biffle, struggled and finished 15th, but keeps the points lead, now down to 7 points over #88-Earnhardt Jr.
The top nine in points are all locked in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. 10th in points, #14-Stewart, clinched at least a wild card spot. So at Richmond nest weekend, two spots are up for grabs, either two wildcard spots or 10th and one wildcard spot.
#14-Stewart, the pole winner, led the first 8 laps, then fell back and finished 22nd, down a lap.
There were 6 cautions for 31 yellow flag laps. There were 18 lead changes among 7 drivers. The average speed was 142.020mph.
The estimated attendance was 90,300 which is up from last years 87,600 which was the crowd on Sunday last year but the race was postponed until Tuesday, which ran in front of a crowd of 29,700.
See race results, awards, money won, laps led, cautions and more on the Atlanta Race Results page (pdf) and the official race and points rundown on the Official Race & Points Report.(9-2/3-2012)

2012 Sprint Cup Driver Chase Wild-Card Race:
[after Atlanta, race 25 of 36]
A look at the race for the two wild-card positions for the Chase based on wins and being inside the top 20 in points.
Driver [wins] standings, behind 10thfirst two would make the chase as wild cards:
#5-Kasey Kahne [2 wins] 11th -18 points out of 10th
#18-Kyle Busch [1 win] 12th -23eight other drivers currently in the running for wild cards (1 win):
#24-Jeff Gordon [1 win] 13th -35
#9-Marcos Ambrose [1 win] 16th -63
#39-Ryan Newman [1 win] 17th -72
#20-Joey Logano [1 win] 18th -105these drivers have no wins but are in the top-20
#99-Carl Edwards 14th -44
#27-Paul Menard 15th -59
#1-Jamie McMurray 19th -151
#31-Jeff Burton 20th -160
(ties broken by 1sts, 2nds, 3rd, etc)The Chase: The top-10 drivers will make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Positions 11 and 12 in the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup are Wild Cards, and will go to drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, as long as they are ranked in the top 20 in points. If multiple drivers outside the top
10 tie for wins, the tie-breaker will go to the race winner with the highest points position.
See drivers championship points standings on the Drivers Points Standings (pdf).(9-2-2012)

Race Fast Facts - Atlanta
#11-Denny Hamlin won the 53rd Annual ADVOCARE 500, his 21st victory in 248 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his fourth victory and 13th top-10 finish in 2012.
This is his first victory and fifth top-10 finish in 13 races at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
#24-Jeff Gordon (second) posted his 25th top-10 finish in 39 races at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It is his 11th top-10 finish in 2012.
#2-Brad Keselowski (third) posted his second top-10 finish in four races at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
#16-Greg Biffle leads the point standings by 8 points over Dale Earnhardt Jr.(NASCAR Integrated Sports Marketing)(9-2-2012)

Top-35 in Owner Points and guaranteed a starting spot at Atlanta:
#36 remains in 35th and is now 117 points ahead of 36th, now the #21 team.Rank) Car#-Driver/Team, owners pts, +/-
34) #32-Schrader/FAS Lane Racing, 340 +131
35) #36-Blaney/Baldwin, 326 +117 ahead of 36ththese teams / drivers will need to qualify by speed:
36) #21-Bayne/Wood Bros., 209, 117pts out of the 35
37) #33-Leicht/Childress-Falk, 205, -121
38) #30-Stremme/Inception, 179, -147
The teams are NOT locked in past the next race as the owners points change after each race.
For the owner points standings, see the Owners Points Standings (pdf).(9-2-2012)

Atlanta Notes-n-Nuggets:
" Denny Hamlin earned his 21st victory in his 248th start.
" Denny Hamlin's last win was last week at Bristol.
" Denny Hamlin won consecutive races for the second time in his career.
" Denny Hamlin picked up his fourth win of 2012, the most of any driver.
" Denny Hamlin captured his first victory at Atlanta in his 13th start.
" Denny Hamlin's previous best Atlanta finish was third in 2008.
" Denny Hamlin garnered his fifth win on a 1.5-mile track, including his second of 2012.
" Denny Hamlin has finished third or better in the last four races on 1.5-mile tracks.
" Denny Hamlin's victory in Atlanta marks the 12th different track he has won on.
" Denny Hamlin led seven times for 106 laps including the final six.
" Joe Gibbs Racing earned its 99th career win.
" Joe Gibbs Racing picked up its sixth victory of 2012.
" Joe Gibbs Racing won for 10th time at Atlanta and now has more wins at Atlanta than any other track.
" Toyota garnered its seventh win of 2012.
" Toyota picked up its second victory at Atlanta.
" Jeff Gordon (second) earned his 16th top-5 at Atlanta, most of active drivers, and his sixth top-five of the season including four in the last six races.
" Brad Keseloski (third) has finished in the top-four in four of the past five races, this marked his first top-five finish at Atlanta.
" Martin Truex Jr. (fourth) picked up his sixth top-five finish of the season and 14th top-10, matching the most he has ever had in a single season (2007); first top-five finish at Atlanta.
" Kevin Harvick (fifth) earned his first top-five in the past 12 races, his last was at Dover when he finished second.
" Dale Earnhardt Jr (seventh) garnered his 17th top-10 finish of 2012, the most he has ever had in a single season is 21 (twice).
" Paul Menard (eighth) captured his seventh top-10 finish of the season including one in each of the last three races.
" Race ended with a green-white-checkered finish, the fourth at Atlanta and seventh of 2012.
(Racing Resources and Services -- Statistics Racing Recall / nascar.com)(9-2-2012)

Chase Spots Up For Grabs At Atlanta, scenarios: #16-Greg Biffle, #48-Jimmie Johnson, #88-Dale Earnhardt Jr. and #17-Matt Kenseth have locked up spots in the 2012 Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup going into Sunday's race in Atlanta, the penultimate race in the regular season. Eight other drivers can join them in donning the black-and-yellow Chase-clinching hat after Sunday's race.
Mathematically, every top-10 Chase spot could be clinched. This week's magic number is 49. Any driver 49 points ahead of 11th-place leaving Atlanta (48 points for some, depending on the tie-breaker of wins) clinches a top-10 spot in the Chase.
Four drivers control their own top-10 destiny: Kenseth (who already owns AT LEAST a Wild Card spot), #56-Martin Truex Jr., #15-Clint Bowyer and #2-Brad Keselowski.
Regardless of what any other driver does, Kenseth clinches a top-10 spot by finishing 40th or better, 41st and at least one lap led or 42nd and the most laps led.
Truex guarantees himself a top-10 Chase spot with a 14th-place finish or better, a 15th and at least one lap led or a 16th and the most laps led.
Bowyer needs an 11th, 12th and at least one lap led or 13th and the most laps led.
Keselowski lands a top-10 spot with a seventh-place finish or better, an eighth and at least one lap led or a ninth and the most laps led.
#11-Denny Hamlin, 29-Kevin Harvick and #14-Tony Stewart could also lock up top-10 spots, but would need help. A win would lock up at least a Wild Card spot for Hamlin, Harvick and Stewart. Depending on the final results from Sunday, Bowyer, Keselowski, Hamlin, Stewart, Kasey Kahne and Kyle Busch could clinch at least a Wild Card spot.(NASCAR)(8-29-2012)

Pit Stall Selections: The selections of pit stalls for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway have been made.
Pole sitter #14-Stewart chose pit stall 1 [as do most pole sitters].
Outside pole sitter #16-Biffle took pit stall 23, the 2nd pitstall in front of the start finish line.
#18-Busch, who starts 3rd took the 21st pit stall, the 1st stall with an opening in front of it.
The 43rd and final pit stall was taken by #17-Kenseth, who starts 4th.
To see where the drivers/teams pit stall is, see the pit selection chart on the Pit Stall Selection chart.(9-1-2012)

NASCAR Green-White-Checkered Race Procedure: NASCAR allows a maximum of three restart attempts prior to the White Flag under NASCAR's Green-White-Checkered flag finish. If the leader has taken the White Flag and the caution flag is displayed, the field is frozen and the race will not be restarted. Previously, there was only one restart attempt. The procedure applies to all three national series. See rule and notes on the Green-White-Checker rule page.

Wave-around rule: The wave-around rule dictates that cars under penalty at the time of the caution are ineligible for the wave around.

Happy Hour practice for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway is over, after 50 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#17-Kenseth 180.863
#24-Gordon 180.193
#11-Hamlin 179.959
#18-Busch 179.837
#16-Biffle 181.005
slowest: #87-Nemechek 167.280 & #37-Yeley 168.675
no speed listed: #49-Leffler
notes: Michael McDowell practiced the #20 for Joey Logano again as Logano is feeling ill [stomach flu/virus/food poisoning]. #18-Busch slapped the wall and pancaked the right side, but the crew made repairs to the car and did not go to a backup car.
See speeds, best top-10 average and laps run on the Atlanta Happy Hour practice speeds page (pdf).(9-1-2012)

Stewart wins pole at Atlanta: #14-Tony Stewart won the Coors Light pole for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway with a speed of 186.121mph for his 1st pole of 2012, 1st at AMS (Stewart started 1st in Nov 2002 when the field was set on points due to qualifying being canceled) and 14th career pole.
#16-Biffle will start 2nd followed by #18-Busch, #17-Kenseth, #24-Gordon, #55-Martin, #11-Hamlin, #48-Johnson, #20-Logano and #9-Ambrose.
#10-Danica Patrick qualified 23rd, her best starting spot in her 5th start. #88-Earnhardt Jr. will start 35th.
The go-or-go homers who made the race (8): #30-Stremme, #21-Bayne, #49-Leffler, #95-Speed, #87-Nemechek, #91-Sorenson, #23-Riggs and #37-Yeley.
The go-or-go homers who failed to qualify for the race (4): #98-McDowell, #33-Leicht, #26-Wise and #19-Bliss.
See the Starting Lineup, Qualifying results, pole progression, go-or-go homers. qualifying order on the Atlanta Qualifying Page.(8-31-2012)

Qualifying Fast Facts - Atlanta:
#14-Tony Stewart won the Coors Light Pole Award for the 53rd Annual ADVOCARE 500 with a lap of 29.787 seconds, 186.121 mph.
This is his 14th pole in 489 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series races.
This is his first pole and ninth top-10 start in 2012.
This is his first pole in 26 races at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
#16-Greg Biffle (second) posted his 16th top-10 start of 2012 and his seventh in 18 races at Atlanta Motor Speedway.
#18-Kyle Busch (third) posted his 10th top-10 start at Atlanta Motor Speedway. It is his 14th in 25 races this season.
#26-Josh Wise (45th) was the fastest qualifying rookie [but failed to make the race].(NASCAR Statistics)(8-31-2012)

Coverage of Qualifying for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway is scheduled for Friday, August 31, 2012 at 6:10pm/et.Television (TV): SPEED, 6:00pm/etRadio: live online at goprn.comScheduled Qualifying Re-Air: 1:00am/et

Qualifying Order for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway is posted. 47 cars/drivers are listed.
The first of the drivers scheduled to go out is #19-Bliss, slowest in practice.
The final driver scheduled to go out is #56-Truex Jr., who was fastest in first practice.
Qualifying order is set by the first practice session, with slowest driver going out by speed and the fastest going out last. The non-top 35 drivers are now mixed in with the top-35 in owners points, slowest to fastest.
See the full qualifying order on the Atlanta Qualifying Page.(8-31-2012)

Rain Out Procedures: the rain-out qualifying procedure for all three NASCAR national series is as follows: If first practice is run, but qualifying is unable to take place, the starting lineup will be based on speeds from the car's fastest lap from the first practice, with top-35 cars in owner points no longer segregated from the non-top 35 cars. Previously, the top 35 cars lined up in front of all other eligible car owners.

Friday practice for the AdvoCare 500 Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway is over, after 90 scheduled minutes, the top five, slowest and notes:
#56-Truex Jr. 185.220
#18-Busch 184.831
#14-Stewart 184.253
#2-Keselowski 183.631
#5-Kahne 183.613
slowest: #19-Bliss 175.944 & #83-Cassill 176.269
notes: this practice will set the order for qualifying, fastest goes out last, slowest goes out first. Qualifying is scheduled for 6:10pm/et Friday night, to be aired on SPEED and can be heard live via goprn.com.
See speeds, best top-10 average and laps run on the Atlanta practice 1 speeds page (pdf).(8-31-2012)

Go-or-Go Homers practice at Atlanta: how fast/slow were the drivers who are not in the top-35 of owners points and must qualify by speed to make the Sprint Cup Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway, where they practiced in the first practice:the eight drivers who would make the race if things stayed the same:
#21-Bayne, 21st fastest overall
#98-McDowell, 24th
#30-Stremme, 25th
#37-Yeley, 33th
#95-Speed, 34th
#91-Sorenson, 36th
#23-Riggs, 37th
#33-Leicht, 38ththe four drivers who would miss the race if things stayed the same:
#49-Leffler, 39th
#87-Nemechek, 40th
#26-Wise, 41st
#19-Bliss, 47th/last
(8-31-2012)

2012 Sprint Cup Driver Chase Wild-Card Race:
[after Bristol, race 24 of 36]
A look at the race for the two wild-card positions for the Chase based on wins and being inside the top 20 in points.
Driver [wins] standings, behind 10thfirst two would make the chase as wild cards:
#5-Kasey Kahne [2 wins] 11th -16 points out of 10th
#18-Kyle Busch [1 win] 14th -39eight other drivers currently in the running for the wild cards:
#24-Jeff Gordon [1 win] 16th -55
#39-Ryan Newman [1 win] 13th -58
#9-Marcos Ambrose [1 win] 17th -67
#20-Joey Logano [1 win] 18th -108these drivers have no wins but are in the top-20
#99-Carl Edwards 12th -34
#27-Paul Menard 17th -72
#1-Jamie McMurray 19th -148
#31-Jeff Burton 20th -169
(ties broken by 1sts, 2nds, 3rd, etc)The Chase: The top-10 drivers will make the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup. Positions 11 and 12 in the 12-driver Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup are Wild Cards, and will go to drivers outside the top 10 with the most wins, as long as they are ranked in the top 20 in points. If multiple drivers outside the top
10 tie for wins, the tie-breaker will go to the race winner with the highest points position.
See drivers championship points standings on the Drivers Points Standings (pdf).(8-25-2012)

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Camping, Eating andTravel Info

Some Chassis Selections and Notes by Teams for this race

Chassis selections for Atlanta: see the list of many teams and what chassis were selected by the team to run at Atlanta Motor Speedway:MISSING? why are some teams missing? some teams do not report what chassis in the race previews, press releases of websites.#1-Jamie McMurray: Crew Chief Kevin "Bono" Manion and the #1 Bass Pro Shops/Tracker Boats team will bring Chassis #1109 to Atlanta. This will be the first race for this chassis in 2012.#2-Brad Keselowski: and the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-818 during Sunday's AdvoCare 500 at Atlanta Motor Speedway (AMS). Brad Keselowski last raced this chassis to an 18th-place finish at Pocono Raceway in June. It has been updated to the current Penske Racing specification. The featured tag line on the rear bumper of the #2 Miller Lite Dodge this weekend in Atlanta will read "Lite Up Your Night." Night racing is the perfect opportunity to join friends for an "It's Miller Time" moment.#5-Kasey Kahne: crew chief Kenny Francis has selected Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-739. Kahne raced this car to a 12th-place finish at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in July. In 15 NASCAR Sprint Cup starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Kahne has two wins, six top-five finishes and eight top-10s. The driver of the #5 Hendrickcars.com Chevrolet also has two pole positions at the 1.54-mile oval and started from the top spot one year ago. Atlanta ranks as Kahne's second-best track in career wins, while his average starting spot of 9.1 at Atlanta ranks him third among active drivers.#9-Marcos Ambrose: the #9 Richard Petty Motorsports team has prepared chassis No. 784 for this weekend's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Race at Atlanta Motor Speedway. This DEWALT Ford was run previously this season at Fontana, Kansas and both Michigan races.#15-Clint Bowyer: Primary chassis No. 738 is new and has never been raced. Chassis No. 716 is the backup. No. 716 raced earlier this season in Las Vegas, Kansas, Charlotte, Kentucky and Indianapolis. Chassis No. 716's finished sixth at Las Vegas. Bowyer will make his 12th career NSCS start at Atlanta Motor Speedway on Sunday night. In 11 previous starts, he has five top-10 finishes. He finished a career-best sixth four times spring and fall 2007, spring 2008 and spring 2009. Bowyer has led 66 laps at Atlanta including 52 in the spring 2008 race and eight laps last fall. Bowyer's lone DNF at Atlanta came last fall when he started second and led eight laps, but was involved in a crash and finished 36th. On average he starts 15th and finishes 17th.#14-Tony Stewart: and crew chief Steve Addington are bringing Chassis No. 14-707 made its first start in May in the non-points NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race at Charlotte. It was an unassuming debut, as Chassis No. 14-707 started ninth and finished a quiet 17th. The car has sat idle since, but returns to action for the Labor Day weekend event at Atlanta Motor Speedway.#16-Greg Biffle: and the Matt Puccia led #16 3M / Manheim Ford Fusion will bring primary chassis RK-786 which last ran at Homestead in November and finished 35th. The backup chassis, RK-803, last ran at Pocono and finished 15th.#17-Matt Kenseth: will run primary chassis RK-808 at Atlanta Motor Speedway which last raced at Indianapolis in July. This weekend at Atlanta, Kenseth will pilot the #17 Ford EcoBoost Fusion. In 23 Cup starts at Atlanta, Kenseth has completed 7,080 of 7,423 laps (95.4 percent) and led for 253. Kenseth has an average starting position of 22.3 and an average finishing position of 12.9 at AMS. Kenseth has achieved eight top-five and 13 top-10 finishes at Atlanta in the Cup series.#22-Sam Hornish Jr. and his Todd Gordon-led Penske Racing #22 Team will be utilizing their "PRS-828" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend at Atlanta. This is a brand new car for the "Double-Deuce" team. The "819 car" will serve as the backup. This is the same car that AJ Allmendinger raced in the April 1 Goody's 500 at Martinsville (started 27th and finished second). The team originally planned on racing this chassis at Pocono in the June race, but chose to race the car they utilized in testing (PRS-814) there instead. #27-Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 351 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in the AdvoCare 500. This #27 Quaker State/Menards Chevy will be used for the first time in 2012 competition at AMS. It has been utilized in numerous test sessions this year and was raced last season at Texas (April - started 19th/finished fifth), Kansas (June - started ninth/finished 19th) and Dover (October - started third/ finished 16th).#29-Kevin Harvick: will pilot Chassis No. 378 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend's AdvoCare 500. Harvick drove this Chevrolet at Kansas Speedway in April and Michigan International Speedway in June finishing sixth and 10th, respectively. This Rheem Chevy chassis was also used in competition twice during the 2011 season when Harvick captured a sixth-place finish at Kansas Speedway in October and a second-place finish Chicagoland Speedway in September.#31-Jeff Burton will race chassis No. 393 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend's AdvoCare 500. This #31 Caterpillar Chevy, has been utilized three times this season at Auto Club Speedway in March (started-19th, finished-22nd), Darlington Raceway in May (started-10th, finished-18th) and Michigan International Speedway in June (started-33rd, finished-21st).#36-Dave Blaney will drive the No. 356, purchased from Richard Childress Racing in the off-season. David Reutimann last drove this chassis at Michigan International Speedway. Reutimann also drove the chassis at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Auto Club Speedway, Texas Motor Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Dover International Speedway, Kentucky Speedway, New Hampshire Motor Speedway and Pocono Raceway this season. He had his best showing in the chassis at Kentucky Speedway where he drove from the 38th starting spot to a 23rd-place finish. His best qualifying effort was at Kansas Speedway where he qualified in the 16th spot.#39-Ryan Newman Chassis No. 39-738 is brand new to the #39 team's stable of cars. The chassis has been wind-tunnel tested and it will turn its first laps on track in practice Friday afternoon at Atlanta Motor Speedway.#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: crew chief Chris "Shine" Heroy and the #42 Target Chevy team will race with Chassis #1107 to Atlanta this weekend. This Chassis made its debut this season in Indianapolis where Montoya started 12th, and ultimately finished 21st.#43-Aric Almirola:: The #43 AdvoCare team has prepared chassis No. 752 for Bristol. This car was last on track at Pocono Raceway earlier this month. Almirola has one Sprint Cup Series start at Atlanta - a 21st-place finish in 2009. He also has two Nationwide Series and three Camping World Truck Series starts at the 1.54-mile oval.#48-Jimmie Johnson: Chassis No. 714 serves as the primary for Johnson at Atlanta where it last ran at Kentucky in June, finishing 6th and ran two other races in 2012, at Charlotte in May, finishing 11th and Texas in April finishing 2nd. Chassis No. 669 serves as the backup and last ran at Las Vegas in March to a 2nd place finish.#51-Kurt Busch Sunday night's AdvoCare 500 will be the third race of the 2012 season for chassis No. 557. This chassis made its last appearance at Dover in June, when Busch picked up the ninth starting spot but had his day end prematurely due to an engine failure. It's also the same car the team used at Darlington in May, when Busch competed in the top-10 during the majority of the event before settling for a 21st-place finish due to a late-race spin. Prior to the 2012 season, the car was used as a roadcourse car. Hendrick Motorsports built this chassis with a universal clip, which allows for greater adjustments with the geometric points on the chassis. As such, the team converted the car from a road-course car to an intermediate-track car for this season.#55-Mark Martin: will drive MWR chassis 729 which finished third at Texas and won the pole at Dover. The Backup chassis No. 732 finished 34th at Charlotte.#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr.: crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 crew will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-668. Earnhardt, most notably, was behind the wheel of this chassis when he won the Sprint Showdown in May at the 1.5-mile Charlotte Motor Speedway. In 24 Cup starts at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Earnhardt has one win, two pole positions, eight top-five finishes and 10 top-10s. He has an average start of 15.4 at Atlanta, and his average finish of 12.8 ranks as his third-best at a track. He has completed 99.5 percent of all the laps he's attempted (7,707 of 7,748 total) there and has led 632 laps.#99-Carl Edwards the #99 Subway Team will be bringing RK-782 for the weekend at Atlanta. This car last raced at Michigan in June where it finished 11th and also ran the All Star race and Auto Club Speedway. In 14 starts at the 1.54-mile Atlanta track, Edwards has three wins, eight top-five and 10 top-10 finishes. His average start is 10.1, and his average finish is 13.6. Edwards has completed 94.4% of laps attempted at Atlanta.
(from team PR's/sites if reported)

Notes: Teams in all three NASCAR series in action at Atlanta this weekend will run the same tire codes, though the Sprint Cup and Nationwide tires will be branded "Goodyear Eagle," while the Camping World Truck tires will be branded "Goodyear Wrangler" . . . this is the same combination of left- and right-side tires that teams in all three of these series ran at Atlanta last season . . . Sprint Cup and Nationwide teams also ran this exact tire set-up at Atlanta in September 2010 . . . this left-side tire code (D-4384) dates back to the spring 2010 races at Atlanta in the Cup and Truck series, though it was run with a different right-side code . . . as on all NASCAR ovals greater than one mile in length, teams are required to run liners in all four tire positions at Atlanta. . . . air pressure in those inner liners should be 12-25 psi greater than that of the outer tire.